And we're back
Have touched down in Old Blighty rather late last night with a long flight from Mauritius - which was further delayed by 5 hours - so by the time I finally got in the front door it had ticked well past midnight earlier this morning; however I've flown to/from/within Africa before, so I wasn't as irritated as many of the other passengers appeared to be once on the dash through Heathrow. Thankfully I've learned from previous holidays, and have a spare day for adjustment and unpacking before dayshift re-commences tomorrow, so there was no hurry once I arrived home to my flat for the first time this year, shrugged off my uberpack and slowly started flicking the mains power back on, set all my clocks, and get my hot water going again, and - since my larder, fridge and even freezer are completely bare - have scheduled a shop later this evening at the local Tesco.
Returning home after 4 years, and spending a longer time to re-adjust to my old home-city, affected me more than I initially expected: far from the last 5-day lightning-quick flying visit in 2006 with a new UK work visa in hand, I was able to spend time in Melbourne, catch up with a plethora of family (and new soon-to-be family members as well!) and a lot of friends I hadn't seen since I permanently left the country nearly 6 years ago. It was a little odd and confusing as well: the simple experience being a tourist in my own home-city was like a thin veneer of Melbourne now stretched over the last 20 years of my experiences growing up in Melbourne back then. To describe it as dislocating is perhaps understating it a little. Regardless, I was able to participate in a family Xmas for the first time in 6 years, and catch up on a lot of local (and national) social and political history since I was gone.
Not to mention, staying in the marvellous island paradises of the Seychelles on the way, and Mauritius on the way back, was simply fantastic. The Seychelles islands were drenched with sunshine, perfect white beaches and a fascinating range of blue-to-green seas, with a laid-back people of a range of races, and island-hopping across them to see different things (one highlight of course was visiting the giant tortoises on Curieuse Island). Mauritius was much the same, only established mostly on one far-larger island, probably not as laid-back but more ambitious, and slightly better advanced in the major cities. Still, in my personal opinion, the Seychelles only just wins out, probably with far less people spread across more smaller islands, and a more-remote atmosphere.
The more-daunting quest to empty out my inbox will start later, as will reading back on everything else I've missed since I've been gone. Looking over my photos, I've taken about 400 or so in the 5 weeks I've been gone (slightly more than usual, considering they're mostly of the Seychelles and Mauritius). I'll start whittling them down and begin the usual preparation for inclusion in my photo gallery when I somehow find some free time. But for now, here's a sneak peak:
Seychelles: feeding a giant tortoise, 14/12/2010
So - besides atrocious weather in both the UK and Australia - what have I missed in the last 5 weeks?
Returning home after 4 years, and spending a longer time to re-adjust to my old home-city, affected me more than I initially expected: far from the last 5-day lightning-quick flying visit in 2006 with a new UK work visa in hand, I was able to spend time in Melbourne, catch up with a plethora of family (and new soon-to-be family members as well!) and a lot of friends I hadn't seen since I permanently left the country nearly 6 years ago. It was a little odd and confusing as well: the simple experience being a tourist in my own home-city was like a thin veneer of Melbourne now stretched over the last 20 years of my experiences growing up in Melbourne back then. To describe it as dislocating is perhaps understating it a little. Regardless, I was able to participate in a family Xmas for the first time in 6 years, and catch up on a lot of local (and national) social and political history since I was gone.
Not to mention, staying in the marvellous island paradises of the Seychelles on the way, and Mauritius on the way back, was simply fantastic. The Seychelles islands were drenched with sunshine, perfect white beaches and a fascinating range of blue-to-green seas, with a laid-back people of a range of races, and island-hopping across them to see different things (one highlight of course was visiting the giant tortoises on Curieuse Island). Mauritius was much the same, only established mostly on one far-larger island, probably not as laid-back but more ambitious, and slightly better advanced in the major cities. Still, in my personal opinion, the Seychelles only just wins out, probably with far less people spread across more smaller islands, and a more-remote atmosphere.
The more-daunting quest to empty out my inbox will start later, as will reading back on everything else I've missed since I've been gone. Looking over my photos, I've taken about 400 or so in the 5 weeks I've been gone (slightly more than usual, considering they're mostly of the Seychelles and Mauritius). I'll start whittling them down and begin the usual preparation for inclusion in my photo gallery when I somehow find some free time. But for now, here's a sneak peak:
Seychelles: feeding a giant tortoise, 14/12/2010
So - besides atrocious weather in both the UK and Australia - what have I missed in the last 5 weeks?